


Hollow knight: Rebirth Of Torment

by Solgaleo35



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:14:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26965765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Solgaleo35/pseuds/Solgaleo35
Kudos: 7





	Hollow knight: Rebirth Of Torment

Turp wandered the caverns aimlessly. Scratches, thumps, groans and all other sorts of unnerving noises echoed around him. Screams, snapping and rarely full on struggles could be heard on occasion as well. Within the damp, misty air hung a musk of rot and decay. Turp was pretty much an average beetle. His scarlet thorax and emerald abdomen just barely reflected the orange light given off by the sludge that oozed and pulsated throughout the caverns. His head was a grey that stood out amongst the deep purples and blues of the kingdom, something which he was not at all used to in the slightest. He had no idea of the history of this place. The beetle had come from another land, one that had been burnt to a crisp by a rival. He’d escaped and fled to Hallownest, enticed by the promises of a kingdom grand and eternal, only to discover a place with no such luxuries, only death and a mysterious substance that permeated the caverns. It pulsated and pumped, covered in bulges and tubes. Some of the denizens were covered in it. 

Turp saw a spike of mixed fabrics up ahead. A wide cone of velvet, silk, cloth and many other tattered scraps of varying, clashing colours held together by myriad string and large poles of different types. A pair of voices could be heard coming from inside. The beetle drew closer to the camp, his iridescent shell glinting in the dim light like the reflective spots of the cave floor. Slurping and coughing could be heard in the distance. This place seemed to be safe. 

Turp entered the tent. It was patchy, made from various scraps and threads. It was quite large, the walls held up by old spears. He looked around. Inside were two other bugs, one laying in a scrappy bed beside a scrappy bag and the other standing beside them. On the ground was what looked to be a corpse. The bug in the bed stirred as he roused from sleep. “I had another dream.” Said the one in the sleeping area, crawling out of their makeshift bed. “Let me guess- it was about that stupid bug we killed or whatever it is. Will you let it go.” The one said, sitting at the entrance with a rusted dagger in hand. 

“I can’t control my dreams. Also, brutally slaughtering a random damselfly or whatever isn’t some everyday occurrence.” Said the one in the bed. “Yeah, but stop whining about it. They were probably already infected. And they were probably some random thief. We probably did everyone a favour. It’s not like they were some magical higher being, and why would you have any reason to believe that they would be anything close to friendly.” Said the one standing guard.

“But that was different. I know my dreams are nothing but fiction. I know they were some random bandit but that doesn’t mean I don’t feel guilt for what I did to them” the one said as they swept off the blankets they used, which were actually unknown pieces of fabric stitched together. The one in the doorway spoke, “Why must you tell me about them then? I’ve been here longer than you have and I know much about this place. Your fantasies are offensively inaccurate. The kingdom is dead, along with the infected and the ruler. It has been like that for my entire lifetime. Grow up.” They said. “What are you two talking about?” Asked Turp. The one in the entranceway sighed before speaking. “There was this injured bug that looked weak, so I killed them so we could take their stuff. He keeps saying he keeps having dreams about them and whining about his remorse.” She said. Before they could exit the tent, a shuffling broke the silence of the caverns. 

The corpse began emitting cracks and snaps as it rotated its head fully around to stare down the other two in the camp. Tubes and bulges of amber writhed and burst from beneath the skin. The wanderer standing in the entranceway moved to flee but was snatched in the grasp of a line of rust hued ooze that the corpse emitted from its body. They dropped their dagger as It opened its eyelids to reveal eyes like molten steel and spoke in a shrill, dissonant tone “You doubted me? What joy, to live in that world you think exists. Correct about the part about me being kind to you though.” 

It crawled up onto the wall and pulled out a pulsating, fleshy blade. “I see you got my message. I was going to lure you in but I got tired of waiting. How stupid of you, to think I was slain.” It said, clambering behind the one who was sitting it their makeshift bed. They desperately tried to grasp their heavily tarnished nail and shield they had attained from a trip to the city. The seemingly reanimated husk held up the weapons, waving them around so they were clearly visible. “I see you’ve stolen a dinky little nail from one of mine.  
That rust has got to hurt. Might make you sick. But it also makes it pretty weak.” It said. “That blade is too dull to cut. Let me sharpen it for you there.” The creature said. 

It dragged the beetle towards it, grabbing them with its arms. The husk pulled them in. It grabbed the nail and began slowly scraping it across the beetles head. Turp felt sickened. It then grabbed the shield, snapped it in half and pinned its first victim to the ground with the shards. They squirmed around, still alive and writhing in pain. It’s innards were beginning to become exposed to the elements. It then grabbed the sleeping one and took the dagger off the ground, bringing it close to its next prey. “As for you, I have a game. let’s see how many wounds can you have in your flesh and still survive. Turp stood there, watching this unfold with a look of  
terror on his face. 

Some more footsteps reverberated through the caves. They rapidly began approaching the tent. The wall began to shake violently. The reanimated corpse began to look towards the disturbance, rotating its entire torso around fully. It began to slowly crawl towards the source, with turp right in his path. He began to back away. He didn’t know what the rustling was, but he’d much prefer it to the beast. He backed himself near the canvas wall as the snapping of strings began to ring out. The being prepared itself to pounce, snarling. Was this the end? So suddenly, his life flashed before his eyes. The fabric began to rip as the creature leapt towards him. As it glided towards him, something yanked him from behind.

He felt his body burst out with a forceful yank as he was dragged through the walls of the scrappy home and onto the cold cave floor. Staring down at him was a posh-looking socialite butterfly. Their wings were large, orange and red and their body was blue and yellow. Their eyes were large and teal. They pulled turp up onto his feet. Behind them was the creature struggling through the hole. She didn’t even have to say the words she spoke, for turp knew. “FUCKING RUN. NOW.”


End file.
